Gang Of 8 Throws GOP A Bone On NewShamnesty

This begs the question: if Conservatives have to be thrown a bone to attempt to get their support for the immigration reform bill, wouldn’t that mean that the bill is extremely Democrat friendly? This is starting to look more and more like Obamacare: have a couple of popular provisions, such as a 13 year waiting period, requirement to learn English, border control, no government services, but have the ugly details buried in the bill which will cause massive problems later

(Politico) The Senate Gang of Eight made a series of overt attempts Thursday to win over Republicans on immigration reform, using the first day of Judiciary Committee debate to tighten border security measures on the bill.

None of the amendments impose drastic changes on the legislation. The most significant concession involved requiring the government to achieve “effective control” of the entire Southwestern border, not just high-risk areas.

The lead reform proponents don’t expect any single amendment to sway Republicans and guarantee Senate passage, but by accepting eight GOP amendments, Gang of Eight members attempted to send the message that they are sensitive to demands for an open committee process and stricter border security.

It’s a little bone, as many much stricter amendments, such as requiring that the border be secure for at least 6 months, were shot down

The two Republican Gang members sided with Democrats in rejecting Republican Texas Sen Ted Cruz’s bid to multiply agents and other resources along the border. The same coalition defeated Iowa Republican Sen. Chuck Grassley’s proposal to prohibit undocumented immigrants from gaining provisional legal status until the entire Southern border is deemed secure.

On the bright side, it will take the Judiciary committee weeks to do the markup, giving more time to expose just how bad this legislation is. There are so many poison pills in the legislation that there is no possible way it passes the House. Rubio and Jeff Flake have already ruined their brands with the GOP regarding this legislation, painting themselves as the new McCain and Graham.

The one thing that surprises me is that no one seems to be proposing massive civil and criminal penalties on companies and individuals who hire illegals. Want to stop a good chunk? Put the burden on the employer. If they won’t hire, most illegals will leave, allowing law enforcement, border control, folks who monitor visas, etc to concentrate on the gang members, drug smugglers, and similar bad people. Democrats would be against this, because they want illegals coming to America, the better to turn them into new Dem voters.